Jefferson Street Station, Brooklyn L Train

The mosaic tile adorning the walls of the Jefferson Street station date back to 1928.  The style is Arts and Crafts and our fellow subway rider will find this particular pattern in each station along the Canarsie (L) Line.

I find the use of Arts and Crafts tile throughout the subway of particular interest because it was created in resistance to industrialization; the mechanization of work, the loss of beauty in the unpredictable irregularity which only the human touch can bring, and in so doing, imbue such objects with personality, with humanity.  This is the dark side of industrialization, where vast numbers are at risk of reduction to mere cogs in the wheel of progress.  The warmth of the workshop replaced by the impersonal factory (or in today's world the fluorescent lit cubicle); people condemned to dull, hard days of labor devoid of meaning or purpose.  And yet, it was the tile made by the craftsman, not the assembly line, that was chosen to decorate the next step in the march of industrialization:  mass transit. 

Night Train over Manhattan Bridge, N Line

We approached the Bridge on our bikes. It was night. Approximately 10:00 PM, late summer.   The East River was a black void stretching below us, reaching for infinity.  Looking out over the river towards the Williamsburg Bridge we could not see the horizon for the black sky and black water merged into one giving the appearance that we were suspended high above a great chasm separating two cities.  Immense illuminated towers marked the edge of the chasm, the borders of two planets. To my right the N train ran parallel. I pedalled faster to keep up, to ride side by side, to race the train to the end of the bridge, my eyes locked with a passenger.  I was now beating the train, I was winning!  A manical laugh came deep from within as I looked out again over the vast expanse.  I was flying.

Ghost Train

Jay Street Borough Hall, Departures and Arrivals

Jay street Borough Hall glass mosaic entitled "Departures and Arrivals,"  2009

The artwork -  based on Ben Snead's original paintings - features species that have migrated to Brooklyn as well as one species that is departing. He arranges the species in layers that can be seen from left to right: European starling (originally from England), a house sparrow (Europe), Red Lion fish (Indian Ocean), Monk parrot (South America) and Koi (Japan). The Tiger Beetle is represented on a tile background; a local species that is in decline. The result is a bold and graphic set of images that intrigue and delight passersby during their own departures and arrivals.

The intricate play of nature is the theme of Ben Snead's mosaic and tile artwork, which fills the south mezzanine with bold color and intricate patterns along a specially designed 103 foot-long curved wall. The work exhibits the artist's interest in natural species and ways of arranging them in systems and patterns that highlight the connections and relationships between dissimilar species.

                                                                                                           *** taken from Arts for Transit